Chapter Fifteen
Jay rubbed his plams together as the lift descended the three floors to the basement floor. The doors opened and he caught the distinctive smell he had remembered from his last visit here, almost three years previously. Well, somethings didn’t change, he thought. It was a mixture of chlorine from the pool, stale sweat from the people who used the gym, and a strong musky perfume that the management of the building’s gymnasium facilities had introduced to make up for the ventilation problems, with the hope it would drown out the other two smells.
He turned left towards the gymnasium facilities and walked through the automatic doors. He knew that a signal giving him access had been sent from the smart chip in his upper arm. He had never really thought about it before, but since his conversation with Aimee about the subject, he was trying to understand when and how and what the chip controlled in his life. He didn’t know why it hadn’t mattered to him before, or why it mattered to him now. He just knew that it was something he needed to understand, and store away. Just in case he needed it in the future.
There were only a few people in the entrance hall, and he walked past them as they chatted. They did not look at him as if he was strange, which was a good sign he thought. A good sign, because Jay did feel as if he was the odd one out. Obviously, it didn’t show; it was only a feeling that Jay himself felt, and he showed no outward appearance of oddness. This, he felt, would help him overcome the feeling.
Access to the gym needed no human contact, although there was a receptionist on hand if anyone did have any questions to ask. Jay smiled at her as he walked towards the access door, and was almost pleased that she seemed not to see him. Her face showed no change in expression as Jay walked by, although he did catch her eyes checking him over. She, he realised, would know who was a regular here, and who wasn’t. He didn’t know why he felt it, but he was sure that she would stop him on his way out to ask him something.
Walking into the male changing rooms, he was struck by a stronger smell of sweat, mixed with other varieties of odours, probably coming froim the combination of perfumed shampoos and soaps that people used. There were a few people rubbing themselves dry with towels, and others undressing. A man was fixing his tie whilst looking into a half-length mirror, and another man at his side, naked from the waist upwards and with a towel wrapped around him, was shaving. Most of the people there at the moment were older than Jay. Probably mostly retired, he thought.
The changing room had changed little from what Jay remembered of it. A new lick of paint, perhaps a few different fixtures, and the lighting was certinly fifferent, but the seup was the same. There were a lot of individual lockers, and benches nearby them where people could get changed. There was also a section at the bottom of the area, near the pool, where it was possible to use a private changing room, and this is where Jay headed for.
He chose one of the rooms near the corner, where he thought there were no people, went inside and locked the door. He sat down on the bench and took a deep breath. He had done it. So far so good. He felt incredibly tense, but the swim ahead of him should help him to relax. He only hoped the pool was not too crowded.
624 words
10,586 words in total
He turned left towards the gymnasium facilities and walked through the automatic doors. He knew that a signal giving him access had been sent from the smart chip in his upper arm. He had never really thought about it before, but since his conversation with Aimee about the subject, he was trying to understand when and how and what the chip controlled in his life. He didn’t know why it hadn’t mattered to him before, or why it mattered to him now. He just knew that it was something he needed to understand, and store away. Just in case he needed it in the future.
There were only a few people in the entrance hall, and he walked past them as they chatted. They did not look at him as if he was strange, which was a good sign he thought. A good sign, because Jay did feel as if he was the odd one out. Obviously, it didn’t show; it was only a feeling that Jay himself felt, and he showed no outward appearance of oddness. This, he felt, would help him overcome the feeling.
Access to the gym needed no human contact, although there was a receptionist on hand if anyone did have any questions to ask. Jay smiled at her as he walked towards the access door, and was almost pleased that she seemed not to see him. Her face showed no change in expression as Jay walked by, although he did catch her eyes checking him over. She, he realised, would know who was a regular here, and who wasn’t. He didn’t know why he felt it, but he was sure that she would stop him on his way out to ask him something.
Walking into the male changing rooms, he was struck by a stronger smell of sweat, mixed with other varieties of odours, probably coming froim the combination of perfumed shampoos and soaps that people used. There were a few people rubbing themselves dry with towels, and others undressing. A man was fixing his tie whilst looking into a half-length mirror, and another man at his side, naked from the waist upwards and with a towel wrapped around him, was shaving. Most of the people there at the moment were older than Jay. Probably mostly retired, he thought.
The changing room had changed little from what Jay remembered of it. A new lick of paint, perhaps a few different fixtures, and the lighting was certinly fifferent, but the seup was the same. There were a lot of individual lockers, and benches nearby them where people could get changed. There was also a section at the bottom of the area, near the pool, where it was possible to use a private changing room, and this is where Jay headed for.
He chose one of the rooms near the corner, where he thought there were no people, went inside and locked the door. He sat down on the bench and took a deep breath. He had done it. So far so good. He felt incredibly tense, but the swim ahead of him should help him to relax. He only hoped the pool was not too crowded.
624 words
10,586 words in total
posted by blog-efl at 13.11.04
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